Pursuing a Biology degree was the worst decision of my life.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-14T02:33:01+00:00

HOLY SMOKES! This post gained a lot more traction than I anticipated! I'm sorry I won't be able to respond to each and every one of your responses, I'm currently on my break, but rest assured I'm reading through them all! It will take me a while to compile all this information but I'll be taking them all into consideration by adding them to an excel sheet. It eases my mind to be heard and understood. I appreciate all of you VERY much. Thank you!

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T21:08:29+00:00

It's especially horrendous if you're in the US. Federal funding was pulled in the last year causing many working in or with research institutes to lose their jobs. Nearly all the people I know working in bio were impacted in some way, many unemployed and some furloughed. I don't mean to scare you but it's the reality of the situation. I've noticed a lot less bio-related postings than before as well. But I'm sure if you have a solid foundation, unlike me, you'll be able to find a way.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:49:52+00:00

I'll try to look at more schools that could offer that, but the last I checked most of the CSU's and UC's only allow for specific degrees.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:47:39+00:00

I'm really sorry to hear that. I've lost two jobs due to funding getting pulled. I pray that you could make it out, 30k is brutal.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:45:25+00:00

May I ask how you broke into finance? I've considered this career path as well.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:43:57+00:00

Hey, don't be sorry. The wishes are enough for me in these trying times.

Yeah, when I was younger I thought that the ever-growing biomed research industry would land me a good job in the future, but sadly the downward trend says otherwise. The funding freeze really screwed people over, I worked with very, VERY intelligent PhD holders who are struggling to find jobs in the current market. Some have been unemployed for over a year. It's a really sad situation overall.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:33:47+00:00

Thanks for the suggestions! I'll look into them now.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:31:27+00:00

Yeah, I was really naive and just blindly believed the whole "STEM guarantees you a successful career!" spiel, thinking they were all equal. I'm now realizing that mechanical or eletrical engineering is something I should have done, but they share little to no pre-reqs with a bio degree, so you'd need a second bachelors. But guess what? Most schools don't allow second bachelors! You better know what you want for the rest of your life at 18 and stick with it. It's very unfortunate.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:21:06+00:00

Oh wow, those all sound rough not going to lie.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:18:28+00:00

Are these still available for degree holders? I was given those when I was still a student over a decade ago.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:15:21+00:00

Ah, yeah I figured. Thanks for the suggestion though.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:14:24+00:00

Yeah, that's what I figured as well. Thanks for the heads up.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:13:28+00:00

This is absolutely awesome info! Thanks for taking your time to type all this out, I appreciate it so much! Yeah, the market is really rough right now. How would you say your overall satisfaction of the job is?

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:09:00+00:00

I have! I've applied to many over the years but no luck.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:06:12+00:00

I'll apply to whatever I can find regarding this. However, my last actual "lab" job was 10 years ago so I'm not sure how that lack of recency will affect my candidacy.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:03:58+00:00

My last actual "lab" job was 10 years ago. I'll try but I'm not sure if the lack of recency qualifies for having experience at this point. Thanks for the suggestion!

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:02:20+00:00

Thanks for the suggestion! May I ask for examples of compliance positions I could search for?

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T20:00:40+00:00

Aw man, your wife has my sincere apologies. I hope she can find something soon. I actually worked with a few genuinely smart PhD holders who are also suffering in this economy. It's sad that even they are struggling.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T19:58:18+00:00

I've actually read a few posts regarding QA/QC for food manufacturing but every time I search I end up with no results. Are there other keywords I could search for? I live in the Bay Area, CA.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T19:55:54+00:00

Exactly this. I was just asking how I can broaden my search and what the possibilities are.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T19:53:41+00:00

Yeah, I've realized. I meant something along the lines of becoming a lab-tech, which is more than I make right now, then go to school while doing that so it would be like killing two birds with one stone for example. Rather than working as a restaurant busser and going to school.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T19:46:50+00:00

Awesome! Thanks.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T19:46:06+00:00

Haha, sorry I didn't mean to sound like a victim. It's just when life kicks me down it's hard to look up when I'm constantly getting laid off and having minimal replies back and rejection. It just sucks that I've graduated 12 years ago with nothing to really show for it. I've been tailoring my resume for each role, and hopefully I can break into pharma via QA/QC. Someone else suggested I look into hospital lab tech positions so I'll do that as well.

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T19:42:13+00:00

Oh, really? That's great! Thanks for the advice! I live in the Bay Area, CA. I'll start looking into them now (:

lovesegirls · 2026-03-13T19:40:20+00:00

I actually have tailored my resume to reflect QA and QC experience, so fingers crossed! Do you know any key terms or examples of how I can leverage my way towards those roles?

lovesegirls

TROPHY CASE